Tag Archives: Politics

Voices of Influence

A few years ago, I launched this blog with the idea of sharing insights, ideas, and inspiration. It is my hope that the lessons and ideas shared here help you in some way whether that is fast-tracking your career or overcoming procrastination.

When I started, I thought it was worth it if I made a real difference to just one person.

I’m happy to report that at least one person has found it life-changing. That person is me. I learn far more by sharing these ideas than you can imagine. What an incredible experience to have the opportunity to learn from so many people.

Thank you for reading, for commenting, and for sharing these posts. I appreciate all of you and look forward to getting to know you better in the coming months.

Below are some of the leadership interviews and posts with thought leaders from a variety of fields on numerous topics. I hope you find one you missed and that it positively influences your year ahead.

Here’s the point: Even if you find “playing politics” distasteful, as a leader you’re a part of your organization’s political environment whether you like it or not. That’s because any time a group of smart, ambitious, type-A, competitive, achievement-oriented people gets together, there will be conflict of various kinds.

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“One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.” -Plato

In your leadership role, you will experience disagreements, deals gone sour, questionable ethics, undermining, jockeying for position, currying of favor, backbiting, and all of the unsavory things that arise when the stakes are high, resources are scarce, power is to be gained or lost, and reputations are on the line.

In short, this is politics.

The reality is that if you if you want to get things done, you need to learn to play the game well.

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“If you want to get things done, you need to learn the game of politics.” -Joe Scherrer

Simply stated, your political force field consists of the dynamic interaction of leaders, each of whom seeks to:

use and increase their power in order to

advance and achieve their agendas and to

protect and satisfy their self-interest.

As a result your political force field fluctuates constantly as power is gained or lost, agendas succeed or fail, and self-interest is fulfilled or frustrated.

Let’s look at what it takes for you to maneuver successfully within your political force field.

3 Essential Keys for Successful Navigation

Of course, the ideal policy would be to act altruistically in the service of the organization with the expectation that those around you will do the same. However, since the real world falls short of the ideal, you must adopt other methods to navigate successfully through the human minefield that is the politics of leadership.

Key #1: Maintain Your Integrity.

Know what you believe in and remain grounded in your values. Although you’re playing in the arena of high-level professional politics, it’s neither necessary nor advisable to sacrifice your integrity to do your job.

Key #2: Realize You’re Not Above the Politics.

Since you’re part of the system, the way you handle yourself and deal with situations will cause the political force field around you to flux and change.

Key #3: Be Aware of the Politics.

Part of your problem-solving calculus and decision-making process must include an assessment of your political force field. Leaders who fail to account for the political situation wonder why their solutions don’t fly and their decisions fail.

5 Vital Steps for Successful Navigation

Completing these five straightforward steps will allow you to map out your political force field, remain aware of your status within it, and take action to navigate it with confidence.

Step 1. Identify the key actors who make up the political situation in which you find yourself. List all the people who control, influence, or otherwise affect your ability to produce results and achieve your goals.

When it was in the theatres, I watched the extraordinary movie Lincoln. Rarely do I watch a movie a second time, but I’m such an admirer of President Lincoln that I couldn’t wait for its video release. My family watched it last weekend. To me, the acting is so perfect that I feel like I am truly watching Lincoln himself.

There are thousands of articles and books about Lincoln. As I watched the movie, I noted some of his attributes for achieving his goals. The movie was primarily focused on Lincoln’s goal to pass the Thirteenth Amendment. Throughout the fight in the House of Representatives, Lincoln was:

1. Committed. He was willing to risk his reputation to do what was right.

2. Clever. How he won votes in the House of Representatives is part of the story that intrigues me.

3. Calm. In the midst of incomprehensible stress, Abraham Lincoln was calm. He would tell a story, a joke, or quietly sit by himself.

4. Compromising. He didn’t compromise his values, but he understood the political necessities and how to negotiate in order to achieve the best possible outcome.

People + Books = 1 Changed Life

Charlie “Tremendous” Jones was one of my great influencers. He repeatedly said that, “You will be the same person you are today in five years but for two things: the people you meet and the books you read.” Every year, I am privileged to have the opportunity to read so many incredible books and meet fascinating people from all walks of life.

Last year, I launched this blog with the idea of sharing insights, ideas, and inspiration from many sources. On the one hand, I’m disappointed that I was only able to share a fraction of all of the people who influenced me. On the other, I’m glad that I started doing it because now, as I look back on it, I’m the one who benefited the most. Charlie was right. All of the books I read and all of the people I met did indeed change me.

Here are a few of the people who shared their experience and wisdom. If I can learn a fraction of what they know, I will be better equipped to lead in the coming year.

Before you start the new year, take the time to meet some of these people and take their leadership lessons with you. Instead of “interview in progress” you will find a “great life in progress.”

Our democratic form of government relies on the accuracy of our elections, but how reliable are they? What are the dangers of the technologies we are using? In a fascinating new book Broken Ballots: Will Your Vote Count?, Douglas Jones and Barbara Simons take readers on a journey through historical issues with voting technologies to modern day issues and the finally ending with recommendations for today.

Whether you are Democrat, Republican, Independent or a member of another party, the integrity of the process is critical. As elections are now decided by a smaller and smaller number of votes, the perfection we expect will perhaps be scrutinized like never before.

My interview with Barbara Simons:

Your book Broken Ballots is a comprehensive review of the process of counting votes. It begins with a sweeping view of the use of ballot technology.

I was fascinated to read so many examples of election issues throughout our nation’s history. Share with us one or two of the more memorable events you outlined in the book.

Unfortunately, there are many examples of machine melt-downs and failures to choose from. Two that I think are illustrative of the problems of paperless voting occurred in Cartaret County, NC in 2004 and Sarasota, FL in 2006.